The Ray Shero Era: May 25, 2006 - May 16, 2014

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May 25, 2006: Shero, 43, hired as Penguins general manager to replace Hall of Famer Craig Patrick, whose contract was not renewed after 16 years on the job. Shero signed a five-year contract. He previously had served as assistant general manager for the Ottawa Senators and Nashville Predators.

June 24, 2006: In his first draft, Shero selects center Jordan Staal. It was the Penguins' fourth year in a row with a top-two draft pick. Staal, 18, would make the immediate jump to the NHL and score 29 goals and 42 points in his rookie season.

Oct. 18, 2006: Malkin, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2004 NHL entry draft, makes his Penguins debut after a lengthy transfer dispute with his hometown team Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Malkin scored in his first six games, setting a modern-day NHL record, and finished the season with 33 goals and 85 points to earn the Calder Trophy.

April 7, 2007: Penguins end Shero's first season with a record of 47-24-11 (105 points). It was the franchise's first 100-point season in the past 11 years and was a 47-point leap from the previous season. The Penguins would be eliminated, 4-1, in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by Ottawa.

May 31, 2007: Sidney Crosby is named Penguins captain. At 19, he becomes youngest captain in NHL history.

June 20, 2007: Shero drafts center Angelo Esposito with 20th overall selection in 2007. Less than a year later, Esposito was traded to Atlanta (now Winnipeg). He never has played in the NHL.

Dec. 23, 2007: Standing-room crowd of 17,089 attend Penguins-Buffalo game to set franchise record with 31 regular-season sellouts in a row. For the first time, the Penguins sold out all 41 home games in 2007-08.

Feb. 26, 2008: Minutes before the deadline, Shero deals forwards Colby Armstrong and Erik Christensen and Esposito and a first-round pick in the 2008 draft to the Atlanta Thrashers for wingers Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis. He also acquires defenseman Hal Gill from the Toronto Maple Leafs for two draft picks.

April 6, 2008: Two years removed from last-place Eastern Conference finish, Penguins (47-27-8) win Atlantic Division for first time in the past 10 years and earn second seed in the East.

June 4, 2008: Detroit Red Wings defeat Penguins, 4-2, in Stanley Cup final. It was the Penguins' first final appearance since back-to-back crowns in 1991 and 1992.

June 28, 2008: Shero sent forwards Roberts and Ryan Malone to Tampa Bay for a fourth-round pick in the 2009 draft. The move was an attempt to make salary-cap room for Hossa, who instead signed a one-year, $7.45 million deal with Detroit.

Jan. 8, 2009: Penguins announce four-year contract extension for Staal worth $16 million. His rookie contract was set to expire at the end of the season.

Feb. 15, 2009: Five points out of playoff position, Penguins fire Therrien and replace him with Dan Bylsma, coach of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, on an interim basis. The Penguins went 18-3-4 in Bylsma's first 25 games -- his 40 points were second most of any NHL coach through 25 games.

June 12, 2009: After beating the Flyers, Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes to set up rematch with Red Wings, Penguins win first Stanley Cup title since 1992.

March 3, 2010: Shero deals defenseman Martin Skoula and forward Luca Caputi to Toronto for forward Alexei Ponikarovsky, who played 16 games with the Penguins and left as a free agent.

May 12, 2010: Penguins make fourth consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup playoffs after 101-point season. They defeat Senators, 4-2, in the opening round but fall in seven games against the Montreal Canadiens.

Sept. 20, 2010: Penguins extend Shero's contract for five more seasons, through the 2015-16 season.

Jan. 5, 2011: Crosby is driven headfirst into the boards by Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman. The hit aggravates a concussion in the Winter Classic four days earlier. Crosby wouldn't return until Nov. 21, 2011.

Feb. 4, 2011: In his first game back after rehabbing a lower-body injury, Malkin tears his right MCL and ACL on a season-ending hit from the Buffalo defenseman Tyler Myers.

June 4, 2013: Penguins lead the Eastern Conference with 72 points and eliminate New York Islanders and Ottawa from playoffs in six and five games. The Penguins are then swept by the Boston Bruins in the conference final.

March 5, 2014: Shero acquires forward Marcel Goc from Florida and forward Lee Stempniak from Calgary in return for future draft picks to help fill the void left by Dupuis' season-ending injury in December.

May 13, 2014: After winning Metropolitan Division and beating Columbus in six games, Penguins complete collapse against the New York Rangers after building a 3-1 series lead.

May 16, 2014: Penguins CEO David Morehouse announces Shero's firing and retention of Bylsma until new general manager can decide on coach's fate.

Ray Shero officially was relieved of his duties as Penguins general manager Friday, three days after the Penguins completed a second-round collapse with a Game 7 defeat against the New York Rangers at Consol Energy Center.

Shero, 51, oversaw two trips to the Stanley Cup and one championship during his tenure with the Penguins. He will be replaced in the interim by assistant general manager Jason Botterill.

Here's a look back at some of the highest and lowest moments of Shero's time with the Penguins:

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